Bullies and New Friends
by Curious Archer
Summary: While out one day, Tilly runs into Eloise Gardener. The woman makes her uncomfortable on her best days, but now she seems to deliberately be pushing Tilly's buttons, frightening her and refusing to let her leave… That is until Margot steps in between them. She doesn't really know either of these women very well, but she does recognise a bully when she sees one. Curious Archer.


"One Marmalade sandwich please!" Tilly said cheerfully.

Mr Charles barely looked at her as he made up her order as per usual, even though it wasn't really all that busy and he probably could have spared a few seconds for a quick chat. A couple of days ago, Tilly might not have even noticed this but now she couldn't help but observe the way that no one else in town ever saw her, even when she was right in front of them. At first, when she had realised, it had hurt. It made her feel so alone in the world and like no one cared and like she might not even exist at all. But things were different now. Things had changed. She wasn't alone any more.

So with that in mind, Tilly accepted and paid for her sandwich in a further silence like always before turning and leaving the store without a single glance back. It didn't matter if these people couldn't see her, because the important people could!

Outside, Tilly swung her bag to hang from her elbow, stuffing her sandwich safely inside out of the way until lunch time later on. There wasn't much to do today – it seemed like Weaver was calling her for favours less and less as of late – and so she planned to take a casual stroll back to Killian's apartment… That was now her apartment as well!

The thought made Tilly giddy and she grinned happily as she zipped up her bag and swung it back onto her shoulder again. She was practically skipping by the time she started down the street and looked up just in time to avoid crashing into the person who had suddenly stepped into her way.

Tilly opened her mouth to apologise – an instinctive reaction since she was the one who hadn't been looking where she was going – but the words died before they even made it halfway to her throat. In seconds, her cheerful demeanour was gone like it had never even been there. Now, the good mood she had been feeling as she left the grocers was replaced with a much more fearful one. All her earlier thoughts about her new home and the tasty sandwich that was waiting for her in her bag disappeared from her mind. Her body felt suddenly ice cold on what was a warm sunny day, with goose bumps flaking along her skin and a desperate urge to back pedal and run away as fast as she could.

Which was probably ridiculous to anyone who may have been watching them. The person who had stepped in front of her didn't appear threatening in the least and you wouldn't know any better unless you saw her for who she really was. Unfortunately she always wore a convincing mask whenever she was around other people.

She was a young woman dressed in a long skirt and a red cardigan over her white blouse, strawberry blonde hair that was hanging in long thick strands behind her back and a calm smile on her face with eyes that watched closely as Tilly struggled to keep her breathing under control. Tilly was struggling, because despite the soft serenity of the woman's posture as she stood in front of her, there was something not right about her at the same time. Tilly didn't know what it was, she hadn't known even when she first began to feel this way, but whatever it was, it frightened her.

"Oh I'm sorry, did I get in your way?" The woman asked, even her voice was light and friendly, yet Tilly could have sworn she could heard a distinct threat somewhere behind it.

Tilly's mouth felt dry. _Monster!_ A voice – her voice – shouted from the back of her mind, while the rest of her thoughts were set on full panic mode, trying to tell her to move and get away while she had the chance. But she was frozen; she couldn't move or take her eyes off of the woman in front of her. She remembered the moment back in the Detectives office. She had seen Tilly through the camera somehow, and she had waved to her. Somehow she had known Tilly was watching her and she had stared right into her soul through the screen.

That had been more than just frightening, but there had been walls between them, a form of protection even if it was weak. Now… There was nothing but air standing in this woman's way if she should choose to do something to her right now. Tilly once again told herself to run and once again her body seemed too numb to listen. Her heart began to speed up, to the point where it sounded impossibly loud like it had travelled up between her ears. Her throat itched and burned like she might be sick. Warning alarms were ringing so loudly in her head she almost didn't hear what the woman had to say next.

"I don't believe we've had the chance to be acquainted yet." The woman went on. "I'm Eloise."

 _Monster!_ A voice shouted and Tilly swallowed hard, fighting the urge to throw up on the pavement between them. She knew she was supposed to give her name in return, but she really didn't want to. Still, she couldn't stand there in silence. The monster might do something to her if she didn't answer her soon. She should give her a fake name.

But before she could, however, Eloise- _The Monster!-_ went on. "It's Tilly, right?"

"You know my name?" Tilly blurted, her throat still dry and her bones still chilled, but at least she wasn't frozen in place any longer and she allowed herself a small step back to put some space between them.

Eloise- _The Monster-_ smiled. Tilly really hated that smile. Why did she keep looking at her like that? Why was she even talking to her at all? What did Eloise- _The Monster-_ want from her?

"Of course. You're the girl living with the Detective Rogers." Eloise- _The Monster-_ noted.

Tilly forced herself to stand straight even though she desperately wanted to curl up and hideaway like a child. "That's right." She said firmly. _You failed_. She thought. _You failed, monster. You didn't hurt him._

Eloise- _The Monster-_ smiled at her. "So. You must be making yourself right at home then."

Tilly wasn't sure what she was trying to say. "I'm settling." Tilly mumbled uncomfortably, shuffling from one foot to the other.

"I hope you're not being an inconvenience." Eloise- _The Monster-_ said, raising an eyebrow.

"What?" Tilly blinked, taken by surprise. She hadn't expected that. But then, she didn't know what she expected from Eloise- _The Monster_.

"The Detective and I have a… Special relationship." Eloise- _The Monster-_ said, still smiling at her. "I would hate to hear that you're causing him problems."

"Special relationship?" Tilly mumbled, for some reason that idea made her feel heartbroken. Like it was a personal insult to her that Detective Rogers would ever be involved with a woman like this in any way, especially after Tilly had warned him about her, repeatedly. She still wasn't sure what it was, but one thing was clear. This woman truly was a _monster_.

"That's right. And I am very aware the kind of trouble you bring to those around you." Eloise- _The Monster-_ noted.

"Trouble?" Tilly frowned. "What trouble?"

"Didn't you recently shoot Detective Rogers partner?" Eloise- _The Monster-_ asked, feigning a look of innocence. "I heard he was in critical condition for some time before he made his recovery."

Tilly's eyes widened and she took a small step back in horror. "What… How… How did you know about that?" She croaked.

Eloise- _The Monster-_ smirked. "Well, Detective Rogers told me, of course."

"He did?" Tilly whispered, her fear being momentarily replaced with something much more soul crushing: betrayal.

"Of course. I told you. We have a special relationship." Eloise- _The Monster-_ said, her smile stretching into a malicious grin.

"I… I have to go." Tilly mumbled. "Excuse me." She moved to step around her, lost in her own miserable thoughts.

Before she could get very far, Eloise- _The Monster-_ stepped back in front of her again and Tilly was instantly reminded of her earlier fears. She tried not to show it, but judging by the way Eloise's- _The Monster's-_ lips twitched into a slight amused smirk, she didn't do a very good job of it. Slowly the woman began to walk around her, circling her like an animal about to pounce on its prey and Tilly found herself once again frozen to the spot, unable to move even though her mind was still screaming for her to do so. She knew she had to get away from her, but it was like she was trapped under a spell and instead all she could do was watch until Eloise- _The Monster-_ left her line of sight, then returned again on the other side.

When she came back around to face her again, Eloise- _The Monster-_ didn't even seem to be hiding the nasty amused smirk on her face any more. She wasn't even that much taller than Tilly, yet somehow she towered over her and left Tilly feeling like she was insignificant beside her. She found herself shrinking back even further, only nudging slightly when she should have been running. Why weren't her feet listening to her?!

"You haven't answered my question." Eloise- _The Monster-_ went on.

"You haven't asked anything." Tilly mumbled, swallowing back some of her fear in order to speak aloud.

"Will you be causing an inconvenience? Is so, you might as well leave now before you make trouble for my dear detective." Eloise- _The Monster-_ went on.

"I won't…" Tilly said stubbornly. She hated the way Eloise- _The Monster-_ spoke about the Detective like that. Like he was property who belonged to her. But not even like he was real person, but rather like he was a toy that she wasn't willing to share with anyone. It was disgusting. Tilly needed to get away from her. Once again fighting back her fears that something bad was about to happen, Tilly tried moving to the side. "Excuse me." She said again.

She didn't even see the hand reach out until it had grabbed a hold of her arm and squeezed tightly. It was only a quick and gentle squeeze, but it was enough to cause Tilly to jerk away from her like the contact had been burned. She nearly fell over in her attempt to get away from her, knocking into one of the men wandering past as she did. He turned and scowled down at Tilly in annoyance, who was in too much shock to even manage an apology. Instead she stood in front of him in silence until he finally grumbled his irritation, turning and walking away with a exaggerated eye roll, leaving her alone with Eloise- _The Monster-_ still standing at her back.

"See. Always causing trouble for others." Eloise- _The Monster-_ went on, shaking her head like Tilly was a great disappointment.

"No. I don't!" Tilly said, trying to sound confident but her voice cracked and she felt the familiar feeling of tears building in the back of her sinuses.

"What good have you really done anyone anywhere?" Eloise- _The Monster-_ asked.

"Plenty!" Tilly tried snapping, instead sounding more like a whimper.

"You're pathetic." Eloise- _The Monster-_ sneered, taking a step closer to her, narrowing the space between them drastically. "Why don't you do everyone in this town a favour, including the poor detective, and-"

"Is there a problem here?"

Eloise was taken by surprise and forced to take a step back as Margot appeared out of nowhere, physically forcing her way between the two women. Tilly was just as surprised as the older woman – she'd been so focussed on Eloise- _The Monster-_ that she hadn't even realised anyone else was around anymore – but she instantly felt a rush of relief for the interruption. She had no idea what Margot wanted, or why she was standing between them like this, but she was still so thankful for it.

Eloise stared down at her coldly. "Of course not."

"Then why don't you move along." Margot said simply.

Eloise's expression quickly changed to one of amusement. "Now why would I do that? Tilly and I were having such a lovely conversation."

"Oh, well, in that case; count me in." Margot said, still standing in her way so Eloise wasn't quite able to look at Tilly properly. She crossed her arms over her chest and gave Eloise a big smile. "What were we talking about?"

Eloise paused for a moment, and then smirked, "You really shouldn't have bothered coming back, you know."

Margot, however, was completely unaffected by Eloise's unsubtle threat. "Aw, I'm honoured you guys spend your time talking about me. And I'll admit, I had my doubts about coming back… But I just saw something that made me sure coming back was the right choice." She nodded enthusiastically.

For a moment, all three girls stood in a stalemate with one another. Tilly was staring at Margot in awe. She had no idea why she was doing this but she was facing off against Eloise- _The Monster_ \- like she was nothing. Eloise- _The Monster-_ seemed just as surprised and unsure of what to do next with Margot so effectively blocking her way to the other girl, but at the same time she also seemed to have almost forgotten about Tilly entirely. And then there was Margot herself, who crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow like she hadn't a care in the world about what she had just stepped in between.

After what felt like hours of them just standing, facing off against each other, Eloise's cold smile returned to her face and she shrugged her shoulders. "We'll talk another time, Tilly." She said, never taking her eyes off of Margot.

"I'm sure we will." Margot said, leaning forward with a tight smile. "All three of us."

Eloise looked up past Margot at Tilly, but only for a second before Margot purposely shuffled on the spot so her head in the way again.

With that, Eloise finally turned around and walked away from them. She strode off without bothering to look back, keeping her head held high like it had been her plan to leave at that moment anyway and somehow coming off like she had won even when she hadn't. In fact, even with her back to them, Tilly felt another shiver run down her spine and cringed back slightly.

Before Eloise had even faded from their sight, Margot was turning to face her. "Geeze, what a bitch. You okay?"

"Yeah," Tilly mumbled, still feeling incredibly unnerved by her encounter with Eloise- _The Monster_. "Um… Why did you…"

"Help? I could tell you were in trouble. And I really hate bullies." Margot said, shaking her head and glancing over her shoulder where Eloise had now rounded a corner out of sight.

"How'd you know…" Tilly said, frowning at the girl slightly.

"I had to deal with them a lot growing up." Margot explained somewhat sadly. "No matter how hard I tried, they always seemed to find me and they loved giving me a hard time just like she was doing to you."

Tilly nodded her head, then shook it. "I don't know what she wants."

"She's a bully," Margot explained. "She wanted to get to you."

"Well it worked." Tilly mumbled. "She… She said I just caused problems for everyone and they would all be better off if I just… Well, and then you came so I don't know what I should just do."

"I know." Margot said. "You should just ignore her. Like I said, she's a bully. She's just trying to intimidate you. Don't let her."

Tilly went quiet for a moment. She still felt sick and worried, and she couldn't help but trust this other girl. Yet the only thing she knew was her name, which she had overhead not long after her arrival. They hadn't had a single conversation since then; in fact they hadn't even seen each other.

"She said she has a special relationship with the Detective… Rogers…" Tilly mumbled.

Margot had zero idea who Detective Rogers was, but she also could read the crest fallen expression on Tilly's face well enough to know that he must mean something to her. Margot also understood this feeling well. Plenty of times during her school years, when she was just trying to get through the day, other kids would either purposely befriend people who were nice to her, or lie and pretend they were just to put a rift between them. Some people were just cruel and did everything they could to hurt others simple for the pleasure of it. Margot thought she would leave that behind once she finished school, but it seemed those kinds of bullies just followed other people into the adult world.

"You really shouldn't listen to anything she says." Margot said gently. "Like I said. She's a bully. She just wants to get to you. She'll say anything to rile you up."

Tilly nodded, pressing her lips together. She was probably right. The last time Tilly had seen her, Rogers had been interviewing her at the police station. How close a relationship could they have while he was all but interrogating her. And he wasn't a stupid man. He would see right through her. She was sure of it.

Still, Tilly couldn't shake off the twisting in her stomach, nor the feeling like Eloise- _The Monster-_ was still watching them from a secret hiding place. She had seen her walk away and yet it still felt like she was lingering close by.

"Hey," Margot said. "You sure you're okay?"

Tilly pulled a face and shrugged. She most definitely wasn't sure any more.

"… Um… Do you… Like beignets?" Margot asked finally. "There's this food truck that makes some really good ones."

Tilly paused before answering. She already brought her lunch, and she had plans to go back to the apartment but suddenly, neither of those ideas sounded as welcoming as having a takeout lunch with her.

"Yeah, sure." Tilly nodded, smiling at her.

"Great!" She went to start walking then stalled. "We weren't properly introduced, have we? I'm Margot. And you're… Crazy Tilly, right?" She grinned.

Tilly giggled slightly, ducking her head before looking up with a shy smile. "Yeah, that's me."

"Come on," Margot nodded and the two girls turned and began walking down the street.

 **O*U*A*T**

"God, I love these!" Margot moaned through a mouthful of beignet.

"They're the best all around!" Tilly grinned, nibbling along the edges of her own treat as they began a slow stroll away from the food van.

"Coming back to this place was worth it for these things alone," Margot nodded, finishing hers off while Tilly was still nibbling one end of hers.

Without saying a word, Tilly broke her beignet in half and gave it to Margot. The girl only hesitated for a moment before eagerly accepting the piece and taking a large bite of it. Tilly took a pause from her own treat, watching her as they began walking in a random direction, neither having a planned destination in mind at this point.

"So, you changed your mind about leaving then," Margot noted.

"Oh, yeah, I did." Tilly nodded. "You helped with that."

"Glad I could," Margot said. "I have my own experience with it after all."

Tilly hesitated. She didn't want to pry but she couldn't help herself. "Why did you run away?"

"Oh. Well. I don't even know any more. I was just so unhappy with my life and I wanted more from it. I thought I could find that by travelling and seeing the country but it turned out… It just made me homesick." Margot admitted. "You?"

"That's a bit more complicated." Tilly said, pulling the beignet into pieces in her hand. "I just… Didn't feel like anyone could even see me here."

"Trust me, sometimes not being seen is a blessing." Margot said, pulling a face.

"Maybe sometimes, but not all the time." Tilly said sadly.

"I'm sorry." Margot replied quietly. "That must really suck… But hey, if it helps, I see you. And I see you have a bit of beignet hanging on the corner of your mouth." She teased.

Tilly stuck her tongue out and licked along the sides of her lips. "Better?"

"Nope," Margot laughed. Tilly tried again and still missed it. "Here." Margot used the napkin Sabine had given her and brushed the pieces from her face. "There. All pretty again."

Margot seemed to have realised what she said a moment after the words left her lips and blushed but Tilly found herself grinning at her. She didn't normally get compliments like that. So despite how this lunch had started, she found herself walking with a little bit of a skip in her step, grinning from ear to ear the whole way.

"Do you have any plans for the day?" Tilly asked suddenly, an idea popping into her mind. Something she hadn't even done with anyone – not even Detective Rogers, though maybe someday.

"Not today," Margot shrugged.

"Lemme show you something." She said, reaching out and grabbing Margot's wrist before pulling her along.

She hadn't gotten very far when she stopped short just before the road. At first Margot wasn't sure why, but then she caught sight of the reason, standing quite clearly a little way ahead of them.

It was that woman from earlier. Margot still hadn't caught her name yet but she was watching them with something close to frustration in her sharp beady eyes. It was weird. She looked genuinely frightening but Margot held her ground and stared right back at her. Most people normally looked away after a bit but this woman refused to back down and after a few moments, it was Margot who found herself unable to keep it up. She turned away, breaking their locked gaze, to find Tilly staring at the woman as well, pale and quivering slightly with her hand still gripping Margot's wrist.

"Who is she?" Margot asked finally.

"A monster." Tilly whispered.

Margot cocked her head, wondering just how much of that nickname was a figure of speech. "Come on, let's get away from her. She really gives me the creep. Like, she's acting like a psycho stalker." Margot was still curious as to who she was and what she wanted with Tilly, but she also knew enough to let it be. Maybe one day Tilly would tell her the real story. "What was it you wanted to show me?"

It took a lot of effort for Tilly to drag her eyes away from Eloise- _The Monster-_ but finally she allowed herself to continue to guide Margot down the street, relieved when they rounded a corner and were out of her line of sight. It dampened her mood greatly, knowing that woman was spying on her – and still not actually clear why – but Tilly tried to hide her discomfort with an exaggerated smile as she took Margot down a series of back alleys and streets, all the way through town.

Margot had no idea where she was leading her – it had been a long time since she had been back in this town and a lot had changed since then – but she followed obediently. She felt sorry for Tilly, being harassed all the time by this awful woman after having a bad enough time that she was considering running away. And as much as she tried to hide it, her discomfort with that woman was more than obvious.

"Where are we going?" Margot finally asked, it felt like they had been walking for hours.

"You'll see!" Tilly called, some of her cheer returning now that there was some space between them and that woman. "We're almost there!"

It was hard not to be amused by this strange girl's excitement for whatever it was she wanted to show her. Margot grinned, following along behind her quickly as she darted them down another long street and towards, what looked like, an abandoned building sitting in the middle of nowhere on the edge of town. At first glance it didn't look like there was anything to it. It was a plain square building with grey walls and broken windows with a boarded up set of doors to keep anyone from sneaking in the ground level, which might have worked if the ground windows weren't all shattered. In fact, they were so badly smashed; there wasn't a single speck of glass still clinging to the battered and rotting frames.

"What is this?" Margot frowned.

"No idea. Think it might have been a factory or something." Tilly shrugged.

"And this is what you wanted to show me?" Margot asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"No. This is." Tilly said, leading her around the side of the building.

Margot followed behind her and then froze. Of all the things she had been expecting, this was not one of them. All along the left side of the wall of the building that was subtly hidden from view, Tilly had covered the greying bricks with layers of brightly coloured paint. At first it looked like a random mess of splattered colours, but then Margot stepped back and began to see that it was actually the start of a beautiful sunset. One that overlooked a series of trees and hills from high above like it was being painted from the top of a very tall tower with an open view of the outside.

"It's beautiful…" Margot whispered, feeling stare struck by just how life-like it was. She found herself wondering how Tilly had reached the high parts of the wall. It wasn't massive, but it was definitely out of arms reach and, by the looks, it wasn't even finished yet.

Tilly smiled at her, then shrugged. "It's meant to be sad."

"What? Why?" Margot blinked, turning to face the other girl incredulously. How could anything this beautiful and bright be sad?

"I dunno," Tilly admitted. "It's hard to explain but it's like a wonderful world that we can't touch. We can reach for it," she explained, stretching a hand up like she was going to touch the painted wall but hovering little away from the surface. "but no matter how much we reach, we can't actually get any closer to the beautiful world that's right in front of us… The horizon really is beautiful. But it will always be untouchable."

"That _is_ sad…" Margot admitted in a whisper, staring at Tilly in awe.

"That's what I thought." Tilly agreed, smiling sadly as she lowered her arm back to her side. "But even though we can't reach the horizon… There are always people who keep trying."

"Are you one of those people?" Margot asked softly.

Tilly's smile spread into a large grin. "Yeah! I am!"

They fell silent while Tilly admired her work and Margot… Well, Margot was busy admiring Tilly. It seemed there was much more to this girl than she had originally thought after pulling her out of the way of that oncoming car.

After showing her the painting, Tilly and Margot let themselves slow down as they began to make their way back into town where they had originally met. The picture had a strange affect on them both. They were somewhat sombre and quiet, but not silent. Instead they found themselves talking about casual, every day things while Tilly's painting lingered in the back of their minds but for very different reasons. Tilly was planning the next stages, happy to have finally shown it to someone who could appreciate the sadness of it, while Margot was still wondering what kind of person saw the sadness in a beautiful sunset. And who, on top of that, still found the strength to insist they would never stop reaching for the impossible.

She really was an amazingly strange girl. But then Margot had gotten that idea when they first met and she found her talking to a statue in the middle of the night. Back then it had been funny but now… Now it was just fascinating.

Then, all too soon, it was time to say goodbye.

"Thank you… For today." Tilly said finally.

"No problem. And thank you for showing me your painting." Margot said. "It was beautiful. And emotional. I had no idea you were such an amazing artist."

Tilly shrugged, grinning with a slight blush on her cheeks. She looked like she wanted to say something more but in the end she shuffled on the spot and looking up at Margot shyly again. "I better go."

"Me too." Margot agreed, half turning as they shared another smile.

Tilly watched her go, still smiling. It was amazing how a day could start off so badly, and yet end in nothing short of perfect. She wouldn't have believed it if it all hadn't happened to her.

She had started to turn away when a voice called out . "Hey, Crazy Tilly?" Margot was looking back at her again. "I'm glad you decided to stay."

Tilly looked back at her and grinned. "Yeah. Me too…"


End file.
